The comedian met the 'Full House' star when she was 16.
It's been a difficult 2022 for Tiffany Haddish. The 42-year-old started off the New Year with the death of her dog of 13 years as well as several important people in her life, including comedian Bob Saget.
"I’m going through some things over here," Haddish told ET's Nischelle Turner via Zoom on Thursday while promoting her new Apple TV+ series, The Afterparty. "My personal life is in shambles. This year people are like 'Happy New Year!' I'm like, no, neutral New Year. I'm gonna be neutral in the year."
Haddish specifically referenced Saget, who died unexpectedly on Jan. 9 at the age of 65.
"That man-- he taught me so much," she shared. "I met him when I was 16 at the Laugh Factory Comedy Camp. He was always encouraging and kind."
Haddish felt that Saget's real-life persona matched his Full House counterpart in some ways.
"You know when you watch TV shows and you're like, 'I wish I had a dad like that?' He became like this -- he was instantly like a father figure to me," she said. "Around the time I turned to like 21 he shifted from a father figure type to like a big brother. He'd be like, 'Alright, let’s go out.' He would send me messages and tell me he was proud of me."
Haddish shared that Saget supported her behaving and speaking like she truly does.
"He would be like, 'Tiffany forget all that. You got to be you, got to do what's right for you.' He was one of those few people who always encouraged me to be myself. You know, in Hollywood people are always trying to encourage you to be something you’re not, like, 'Oh you need to look this way. You shouldn’t use this word. You’ve got too much of a country twang. You sound too ghetto.' He was one of the few people, this white man, like, 'Be your best self. You're a strong Black woman, be that!'"
Haddish's comedic chops will be showcased in The Afterparty, which is a retelling of the same night told through a different character's perspective, each with its own unique visual format and film genre to match the teller's personality.
Haddish told ET that it was British comedian Jamie Demetriou that cracked her up the most while filming.
"I would bust up laughing and I could not. My character has to eat in one of the scenes and I’m eating or whatever and he says something so funny one time. When I tell you, it was against our COVID regulations because that food flew out of my mouth," she recalled. "That man is awesome, really amazing."
The Afterparty premieres Jan. 28 on Apple TV+.
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